Readjustments and Recognition.

The irks of not being home for a semester or two is relearning the little "subway spots". I use the word "spot" because I can't think of a better word. On second thought, it could work What are these "spots" within the New York City subway system?

It's which car you take and where you stand, or sit, in the car. For example, let's say there's ten cars on the train (I actually have no idea how many there are. The old ones used to have eight. Never bothered to count the new ones with the electronic maps and everything). Now, most New Yorkers get on the car that will drop them off right in front of the staircase at the destination. What if you don't want to count the cars as the roll on by? Well, most people mark their spots on the platform. Another example is I stand by the garbage can and bench so that I can get off at 14th Street right by the stairs. Why is all this even important? Well, New Yorkers are lousy time managers and we need to make each second count. If you get off at the wrong spot at a busy stop, you can face the longest traffic jam ever.

On to my point now that I got the explanation done. I completely forgot my "spots" while going to 34th Street. I was completely off as I got off at 8th Avenue to transfer to the E train. I had to the E up two stops. I remembered the spot at 34th Street for me was either the far end of the platform or the middle of it. I chose to middle to be safe. Wrong. Far end.

But, all is well now. My second try ended up more successful (though, I was one door off from the stairs. Oh well. Close enough).

On top of relearning all my "subway spots", I also went back to the dance class I took last summer. I haven't been there since last August. There was this one instructor that took an interest in my participation in the class. He was always happy when I showed up and knew I liked tutting. However, that was months ago and I was ready to start all over again and try to fit in to the new crowd there.

To my surprise, two of the instructors there (including the one mentioned) remembered my face and welcomed me back. It felt nice to be remembered. I was only in that class for a summer and yet they still recognized me. A woman taking the class who I saw often over the summer also remembered me. She asked if I was with this big guy who also took the class. He was the only other guy I ever talked to at the class. I don't remember his name which makes me feel terrible. He looked like a Michael. So, I'll refer to him as that. Michael wasn't there. I remember he told me he went to school in Boston and he was trying to make the dance team. He was an extremely friendly and approachable guy. I hope he comes back and takes the class again. It'll make it feel like last summer all over again.

Dance class is going to eat at my wallet. Will need to find a job. I don't really go there to learn as much as I just go so I can be around other people dancing. I'm fine dancing by myself, but it's nice to be around others.

The Zoo and the New York City Experience

It's not the skyscrapers or high-profile stores that make up New York City. It's the people. New York City is a giant zoo and all the people within are creatures on display. Buildings don't make a city. The people do in the same sense that animals are the heart of a zoo, not the cages.

It was my first night back in New York City. After 5-6 hours on the bus from Syracuse, I had to take the subway back home. This is when you know you're a New Yorker. When you're at the turnstile ready to swipe and you hear something in the far distance that puts your brain on high alert. The approaching sounds of a train. Judging by how far you estimate the sound to be coming from, you can pinpoint which train is coming. And luckily for me, it was the downtown E train. The one I needed to take. I made a dash for the train with a middle aged man in a suit frantically making a run for it behind me. Without knowing, both of us ended up on the handicap ramp which spirals towards the platform ten times. Imagine running down a ramp that's shaped like a square maze. Both of us are making sharp turns at every corner and running down the straight path until the next corner. I reach the door first and held it open for him. We slumped down onto the seats, look at each other, and let loose a sigh of relief and chuckle at our run. As soon as the train started moving and our laughters subsided, we both instantly took a whiff of the air. A putrid smell swirled around our noses. It could be the man at the other end of the car. It could have been someone who already got off. But both of us sheltered our noses within our arms. Welcome to New York City.

There's also your fair share of bus drivers. You have the ones who see you running down the street trying to catch the bus and graciously stop and hold the door open for you. You have the ones who curse out the man who came out of his car and accused the bus driver of bumping him in the back. You have the ones who let you on for free when they come late. You have the ones who don't care whatsoever and blame their tardiness on traffic.

There are also the people who delight themselves to your misfortunes. An elderly man sat next to me on the bus today. We both got on at the first stop. Seeing as I had a long trip ahead of me, I nodded off and took my usual nap on the bus. The bus starts to come to a halt as I'm about to wake up. The elderly man is still on the bus and tells me, "This is the last stop" with a grin on his face. Cool. I live two blocks away from the last stop. I tell him, "I know" and his grin quickly fades away and he turns his attention back to whatever he was doing.

Don't get me wrong. Like bus drivers, you have your wide variety. Not everyone is out to see you suffer. There was this time in high school when I fell asleep on the train (I sleep a lot on public transportation) to school. I went to school in the Bronx. To many people, you'd find that to be weird. The only Asian to be heading alone to the Bronx. As I was snoozing, a man across from me tapped me on the leg as we reached the end of Manhattan. He asked me if I missed my stop. I said no and went back to sleep. He tapped me again as we reached the first stop in the Bronx. He asked if I missed my stop again. I said no and went back to sleep. This happened two more times until I figured it out and told him I go to school in the Bronx. At least he was looking out for me.

I could go on about the people you encounter in New York City. But there's too many people. Can you fit a description of every animal you find in a zoo in one blog post?